their armor is thick and their shields broad

As soon as they could get their hands on metal, they used that instead. It worked for the Yupik and Chukcki, because they lived in cold places and used arrows tipped with stone or bone. These things (as well as having the interesting winged design, overgrown pauldrons that were used like sewn-on shields) could be made from leather, bone, baleen or whatever other tough stuff you might be able to get your hands on. here's a hybrid wood and leather outfit from siberia: That's not to say you couldn't use a hybrid design if it better fit your theme. Then clearly they will be using leather and boiled leather armour, which is known to work and be staightfoward to make, and would use material that they would already have access to. people used wooden shields after all, but shields let you use a much smaller chunk of tree that isn't nearly so inconvenient, and is also easier to make so you can bring spares with you. The amount of wood required to usefully defend the wearer against metal weapons is just too bulky and too heavy. The critical thing there is that metal weapons did not exist either. The Haida had access to some metal (like copper) but nothing particularly useful for weapons or armour. may just be decorative, but I'm unsure on that). Here's a Haida armour suit, with wooden helmet (though they cheated and used leather over the wooden breastplate.

Here's an example of some aleutian wooden armour: In similar places you might also find bone armour. So, wooden armour did exist in a few places where suitable metal for making arms and armour did not exist. Note: they have access to lots of oak trees What I'm wondering is: would wooden armor cut into scales and sewn together be effective armor? Would wood be able to hold up against weapons common place in the Medieval High Period? Ex: long swords, long bow, pole axe, etc

The Oelha's solution was to make armor out of the trees that surround their homes. The Oelha need some sort of armor to be able to successfully raid further into their neighbors territory since they would come into contact with better arms and armor the further they travel. This means that most of the metals Oelha have go straight into the nobility and straight into swords. While being warlike and vicious the Oelha are also fine craftsmen and metal workers their lands are poor in metal. Oelha frequently steal cattle and attack outlying villages of the neighboring kingdoms or other clans. The Oelha are infamous raiders left over from one of the hordes that ravaged the land generations ago. In the western highlands live the warlike Oelha tribes.

Their armor is thick and their shields broad